The Value of Planning for House Fires – How to Plan & Prepare

As far as detrimental accidents go there aren’t many incidents as stunning as a fire that destroys your home and personal possessions. A fire in your house is a frightening and an emotionally draining event, whether it destroys everything or not. But there are some precautions you can implement to lessen the chances of a fire from occurring in your residence. The fire damage restoration team from Paul Davis understands the severe condition of house fires and that’s why it’s vital to know how to plan and prepare your house and what to do when a fire happens.

Get Your Residence Prepped for the Risk of a Fire & Always Have an Emergency Plan

Safety should be the number one priority when getting ready for a house fire, and fire extinguishers and smoke alarms need to be placed throughout the property. Smoke alarms are essential since a fire could spring out of the blue and you need to take action as fast as possible. Something else to consider with smoke alarms is obtaining ones that can detect smoke produced from electrical fires. Finally, any kids residing in the house need to be taught about what a smoke alarm sounds like when it‘s triggered and what to do when it happens.

Implement plans for emergency fire routes and make sure everybody knows about them. There should be two exits from all rooms in the house. You’ll also want to have a planned meeting area outside of the house so that you know everybody makes it out safely.

Something else you need to do is secure your important things such as photographs, birth certificates and passports. You could create digital copies and place them into a cloud drive as a backup, and you can buy a fire safe box to keep the real copies secure too. Finally, make a record of all your personal belongings for insurance reasons in case they’re burned up by the flames.

To Decrease the Risks of House Fires Practice These Precautions

Though some fires are uncontrollable, there are some precautions you need to take to avoid a house fire:

  • Cooking: It’s essential to be observant in the kitchen and to not ignore food being cooked alone. Always have somebody there to watch what’s going on.
  • Appliances and Electrical: Frayed cords and damaged plugs could easily produce a house fire, so make sure to check your appliances routinely for any issues. Also, keep an eye on your light switches since if they’re hot, they need to be replaced.
  • Portable Heaters: Guarantee your heater has a control mechanism and a thermostat, and it needs to switch off if the heater falls over.
  • Fireplaces: Having a proper fireplace screen is integral for the safety of your house and everybody in it. Make sure it is sturdy enough to prevent rolling logs and sparks. You also should clean your fireplace routinely to remove the extremely flammable creosote that develops.
  • Children: Teach your kids that fire is not a toy, and make sure to store lighters and matches in an area that’s out of reach and out of sight.
  • Smoking: Cigarettes and cigars are extreme fire threats, and taking your smoking outside is the finest method to avoid a house fire. If you smoke inside, make sure you have deep ashtrays and that you never smoke in bed or while you’re drowsy. Additionally, never smoke inside when someone in the house is on oxygen since this is highly explosive.

Call the Fire Damage Repair Technicians at Paul Davis

House fires happen, whether it’s an accident or something completely out of your power, Paul Davis is here to help. Our fire damage repair services can re-mediate your house back to normal again. Get in touch with us at 888-473-7669 and a franchise in your area will be there for you.